Holographic waveguides may emit a significant amount of light from each of a front and rear surface. This light emission may limit its use in night operation and when security is critical, especially in scenarios where a user's light signature may be detectable by hostile forces.
Traditional occluded (non see-through) displays may attempt to block light emissions using physical barriers between the display and external areas. Traditional mitigation techniques may include placing an eye cup around a user (eye to display) area to mitigate display light emissions as well as face reflection light emanating from the facial area.
During bright daylight operations, a see-through augmented reality (AR) holographic waveguide may allow excessive ambient light transmission through the waveguide limiting a user's ability to view a contrast of the information displayed on the waveguide. Some optical shutters may offer a diming feature of an ambient component to enhance holographic visibility but do not provide an adequate light security ability to occlude the shutter to zero transmittance ensuring light security.
Ballistic eye and face protection may be a requirement for many helmet devices in use by some operators (e.g., military forces). While holographic waveguides may be incorporated within the facial areas of the helmet device, any light emission from the facial area may cause concern.
Therefore, a need remains for a system and related method which may overcome these limitations and provide a novel solution to mitigation of light emission from a ballistic AR visor ensuring light security for the user.